Let Us Remember That Crossfire Died for a Reason

The most ironic thing about Crossfire'sreturn to CNN is that no one remembers why it went away in the first place. Sure, we can go back and watch the delicious moment when the show imploded on live national television. But the arguments Jon Stewart made that day didn't stick, and now, like a herpetic disease whose symptoms reemerge in times of stress, the weeping sores of what Stewart called "partisan hackery" are set to break out again this fall.

Four new hosts, all of but one of whom have spent careers in politics or government, will lead what CNN president Jeff Zucker promises to be "passionate discussion," which probably means more of the same predictable partisanship and co-dependent dysfunction that fills the rest of cable's airwaves. On the Right, an old white man who lost to Rick Santorum in last year's Republican primaries and is $4 million in debt will be joined by a much younger woman who wears glasses. On the Left, two professional Democratic operatives will tell us that the Democratic Party is just swell, thanks. The message here: CNN still plans on hurting America if it still has the power to do so.

Let's rewind to Stewart's protest. It was October 2004, in the thick of the deepest shit of that particularly noxious presidential election, and The Daily Showhost was invited to join the fray. But before Tucker Carlson or Paul Begala had asked him a single question, Stewart took control of the show. "Stop," he pleaded. "Stop, stop, stop hurting America." The hosts tried to keep things upbeat, but Stewart wasn't playing that game. "I'm here to confront you," he said. He insulted Carlson to his face, ridiculed his signature bow-tie, and from comedy's safe high ground, soaked both men in moral condescension. "You have a responsibility to the public discourse," he said, "and you fail miserably." When the show was cancelled three months later, CNN's then-president admitted that Stewart's cri de coeur had been its coup de grace.

And yet here we are. Crossfire is coming back, and no one knows what Stewart was trying to say. At The New Yorker, Ian Crouch misses the markby reducing the tantrum to a spirited but naive demand for civility. (If that was the case, calling Carlson "a dick" on national television was a rocky start.) To be clear, the reason that the episode has been watched 5.8 million times on YouTube is not because someone in America finally stood up to the rude people on CNN. It was a much larger complaint.

This is a populist outcry, and it's the nut of the entire argument. Stewart was calling out, just as he has every night on his show for more than a decade, a politicotainment complex that exploits society for the gains of its own players, damn the consequences. On Crossfire, he called out the shills of a corrupt system, and the crowd loved him for it.

There is a real hunger today for open hearings of dissent, for debates on things that don't cut clearly across the lines drawn in the U.S. Senate. Food politics, the militarization of police departments, the ethics of solitary confinement in American prisons, to name a few.

‪It's not hard to imagine what a future show would look like. First, appeal to independents (who now outnumber both Republicans and Democrats). Then, call out hypocrisies on both sides. On the Right, invite on a Libertarian like Michigan Congressman Justin Amash to ask how conservatives can argue for lower taxes, but a bigger military. On the Left, bring on a liberal activist to ask Van Jones why, if the Democratic Party cares about African Americans, it does nothing about the failed drug war or the attendant prison crisis that has decimated black communities nationwide. In short, deliver on the promise of the show: help people navigate the biggest issues of the day without steering them right back to the same old broken politics they are leaving behind.‬

A Part of Hearst Digital Media
Esquire participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.